Hair shaping apparatus

ABSTRACT

A hair shaping apparatus comprised of sectionalized helmetshaped mold receivable about the head of a user in full contact with the body of hair having an inner surface corresponding to a selected coiffure wished to be imparted to the hair of the user, an adjustable heating element imbedded within the helmet, and a plurality of ventilating perforations, whereby the hair of a user will accept and retain the inner contour of the helmet after a moistening agent applied to the hair is evaporated through the plurality of perforations as a result of the increased temperature within the helmet created by the heating element.

United States Patent Carr 1 1 Sept. 30, 1975 [54] HAIR SHAPING APPARATUS 3.476121 11/1969 Foley 132/9 [76] Inventor: Uriah H. Carr, 8852 S Michigan 3,594,915 8/1969 Routledge t. 132/9 Ave., Chicago, Ill. 60619 I I Primary Lxummer-G. E. McNeill [22] Filed: Jan. 18, 1974 1211 pp 434.599 57 ABSTRACT A hair shaping apparatus comprised of sectionalized U-S. Cl. heln1et shaped rnold receivable about the head of a Int. Clt user in ontact the of having an Of Search inner urface orresponding to "1 selected coiffure wished to be imparted to the hair of the user, an adl l References Cited justable heating element imbedded within the helmet,

UNITED STATES PATENTS and a plurality of ventilating perforations, whereby the 1,761.269 6/1930 Mazade 34/26 hair of a user will accept and retain the inner Contour 1134240 13/1939 1 133/9 of the helmet after a moistening agent applied to the 2.781.764 2/1957 Miller 132/9 hair is evaporated through the plurality of perforations 3088,46) 5/1963 Berryhill ct a1. 132/9 as a result of the increased temperature within the hel- $168,382 2/l965 Chambers CI 1. 34/99 1113]: created by the heating element 3.348.240 10/!967 Kohn 2/174 3.464.425 9/1969 Gagliano 132/9 8 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures US. Patent Sept. 30,1975 Sheet 1 of2 3,908,673-

US. Patent Sept. 30,1975 Sheet 2 of2 3,908,673

HAIR SHAPING APPARATUS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to hair styling apparatus and more particularly to a mold operable to impart a selected coiffure to the hair of a user.

2. Description of the Prior Art A currently popular hairstyle known as an Afro or Natural involves combing the entire head of hair such that each individual strand of hair stands straight out from the scalp. Such hairstyles, emphasizing the natural texture ofkinky" or wooly hair, require for acceptable appearance, an outer surface outling a smooth continuing curved contour without creating a matted or pasted-down appearance.

Prior art devices are well known for the contouring of hair having wooly or kinky characteristics by the application of heat applied directly to the hair by a generally smooth-surfaced device. These devices are of a generally small size having at most the capability to operate upon rather small areas of the users hair at one time. Because these devices permit the user to only work on a limited area of the head at one time, the user must progressively advance to each area of the head in order to impart the desired coiffure. As a result, the quality of the final product depends to a large extent upon the ability of the user to properly treat each sec-.

tion of the head of hair in a cooperative fashion to achieve the desired overall hairstyle.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION My invention, in a preferred embodiment, consists of a variety of perforated, sectionalized, rigid helmet structures receivable about the head of a user resting upon a neck collar having an inner surface contour in contact with the hair of a user, thereby imparting a se lected coiffure to the hair of a user corresponding to the inner surface contour of said structure. The structure has imbedded therein a selectively adjustable heating means to effectively dry the hair.

In a modification of my invention, the helmet structure is of a one-piece, double-walled construction whereby heated air, provided by a presently available means, is directed to the hair via space between the inner and outer walls of the double-walled construction. The structure being held in place on the head of a user by a resilient characteristic of the helmet structure against the compressed body of hair.

In another modified form of my invention, I provide a helment structure comprised of a substantially rigid fine wire mesh construction whereby heated air is blown directly onto the hair through the wire mesh.

It is, therefore. the general object of this invention to provide an improved hair shaping apparatus.

It is another object of this invention to provide a coiffure molding apparatus operable to impart a selected hairstyle to the hair of a user in a single step.

It is yet another and more specific object of this invention to provide a heated hair shaping sectionalized helmet having an inner contour corresponding to a selected coiffure receivable about the head of a user operable to shape the hair of the user to the selected coiffure.

It is yet another and more specific object of this in vention to provide a single-piece helmet hair shaping apparatus having a double-walled construction, the

inner wall of which is perforated and heated by an existing means blowing heated air into and throughout the area between the double walls, throughout the he]- met.

It is yet another object of the invention to provide a wire mesh helmet coiffure mold whereby heated air is blown directly upon the hair by a pre-existing heating means.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be readily apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments thereof, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, although variations and modifications may be effected without departing from the spirit and scope of the novel concepts of the disclosure, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a pictorial representation illustrating the appearance of a user having a kinky or wooly textured head of hair.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an improved hair shaping apparatus in place atop the head of a user constructed in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of the embodiment of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged, fragmental cross sectional view of an improved hair shaping apparatus showing an alternative embodiment of my invention and constructed in accordance therewith.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating another embodiment of my hair shaping apparatus.

FIG. 6 illustrates a finished coiffure as imparted to the hair of a user by a hair shaping apparatus constructed in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an expanded perspective view with portions broken away of the hair shaping apparatus of FIG. 2 illustrating internal compound styling curvatures.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 illustrates the hair of an individual having a texture of hair suitable for coiffuring by the present invention. Shown in FIG. 2 is the same individual with the improved hair shaping apparatus 10 in position during the process of shaping the hair into a desired style. The helmet-shaped hair shaping apparatus 10 is positioned and retained in place about the head by a one-piece collar means 11 which is detachably connected along ajuncture 12 to an upper sectionalized helmet portion 13 and rests upon the shoulders of the user. The helmet portion 13 may be secured to the collar means 11 by a tongue 15 around the juncture 12 mating with a continuous groove 16 running along the upper edge of the collar 11, as shown in FIG. 3. The sectionalized helmet 13 has a plurality of sections, such as shown in FIG. 3, wherein a helmet top 17 is detachably connected to the helmet lower section 18. Each helmet section is joined to oneanother, again shown in FIG. 3, by an arrangement such as a lip 19 on the helmet top 17, which overlaps an adjacent section such as the helmet lower section 18 or by another type of fastening means such as, by way of example, a hinged connection.

The collar means 11 functions to position the helmet 13 in a symmetrical arrangement about the head of a user to insure that the coiffure imparted to the hair by the shaping process will be properly centered.

The helmet 13 is constructed using a presently available lightweight material having imbedded therein, as shown in FIG. 3, a looped electrical heating coil 20.

An independent looped heating coil may be provided for each section of the helmet 13 connected to a suitable source of electricity by means of an electrical cord 21, the temperature of each coil being adjusted by a thermostat 22 located on the outer surface of each section, or by a single remote control.

The helmet 13 has a plurality of perforations 23 to permit an evaporating moistening agent applied to the hair to escape from within the confines of the helmet.

As will be more fully discussed in the following paragraph explaining the operational procedure steps of the present invention, a variety of different helmets are provided, each having a contoured inner surface corresponding to the desired coiffure to be imparted to the hair of the user.

The improved hair shaping apparatus 10 is used as follows:

The hair is first fluffed out as shown in FIG. 1 and made soft and pliable by lightly moistening with water or other suitable hair solution. The hair is then combed into the general style selected. Because the hlmet does depress the hair in imparting the selected coiffure, the hair is fluffed to a fuller extent than that of the final shape. While the hair is still damp, the helmet having an internal contour corresponding to the selected coiffure is positioned in one piece or as fully assembled as illustrated in FIG. 2 to the outer surface of the hair after the collar 11 is in place atop the shoulder 14 of the user. The thermostats 22 or other control are set to the required heating temperature, resulting in the solution previously applied to the hair evaporating and escaping from the helmet 13 through the numerous perforations 23. The result is that the hair is ultimately dricd within the helmet l3 and the hair is molded" to the inner contour of the helmet, thus achieving the selected coiffure.

Another embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. 4 wherein the helmet 35 of the hair shaping apparatus is comprised of a double-walled, rigid construction which may be one-piece, especially if on structed of an elastic material which can be enlarged to receive the fluffed-out hair.

The partial sectional view of FIG. 4 illustrates the lower portion of a helmet 35 and the juncture 30 between the helmet 35 and a collar 31. The collar 31 is of a design and purpose similar to that of the collar 11 in FIG. 2, except that the juncture between the collar 31 and the helmet 35 in FIG. 4 accommodates the different construction of the helmet 35. The helmet 35 has an inner wall 32 and an outer wall 33 attached and maintained in a spaced relationship to each other by a plurality of cylindrical spacers 34 attached at either end to the walls 32 and 33. Also, the inner wall 32 and the outer wall 33 are molded to each other along all edges of the helmet 35 as shown in FIG. 4 by an edge 36. The inner wall 32 of the helmet 35 has a plurality of perforations 37 spaced throughout the entire inner tween the walls 32 and 33 of the helmet and ultimately out through the perforations 37 against the hair of a user.

The embodiment shown in FIG. 4 permits a onepiece, lightweight helmet, the inner contour of which corresponds to a selected coiffure, to mold the hair of a user with a greatly simplified and less expensive structure. A different helmet, of course, would still be required for each different coiffure, or replaceable inserts giving a different inner surface could be provided for this embodiment or for the above-described preferred embodiment.

Another embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. 5 which illustrates a helmet having a fine wire mesh or perforated metal or plastic construction. Because of the light weight of this embodiment, no collar is required. The helmet, having a contour corresponding to a selected coiffure, is merely positioned atop the head of a user, followed by drying the premoistened hair by directing a flow of pre-heated air over the entire surface of the helmet 50 from a commercially available hair drying means 51'.

It is to be emphasized that each embodiment can provide different inner contours corresponding to the pres-- ently popular or future hairstyles. As an example, FIG. 6 pictorially illustrates a finished coiffure molded to the hair of a user having a wooly or kinky textured hair, as shown in FIG. 1.

Although the teachings of my invention have herein been discussed with reference to specific theories and embodiments, it is to be understood that these are by way of illustration only and that others may wish to utilize my invention in different designs or applications.

I claim as my invention:

I. A hair shaping apparatus for imparting a selected coiffure to the hair of a user, said shaping apparatus comprising:

a substantially rigid structure receivable about the head of a user, having an inner surface in full contact with the hair of the user and in variously spaced relationship from the skin of the head of the user, I

said inner hair contacting surface having a contour corresponding to the outer dimensions of a selected coiffure desired to be imparted to the hair of the user,

the structure constructed of a material having a sufficient rigidity to retain the contour of the hair contacting surface during use of the structure,

and a positioning means for holding said structure in a constant relative position atop the head of a user,

said structure being sectionalized permitting said structure to be assembled atop the head of a user.

2. A hair shaping apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said structure is sectionalized permitting said structure to be assembled atop the head of a user.

3. A hair shaping apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said structure has imbedded within said structure an electrical heating means whereby the hair of a user can be rapidly dried.

4. A hair shaping apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said structure has a plurality of perforations entirely therethrough to permit vapors to escape from within the structure.

5. A hair shaping apparatus for imparting a selected coiffure to the hair atop the head of a user, said apparatus comprising:

a double-walled helmet-shaped structure receivable about the head of a user including an inner hair contacting surface and outer wall, attached together in a spaced relationship,

said inner wall having a dimensional curvature correlated to a selected coiffure to be imparted to the hair atop the head of a user, said inner wall having a plurality of perforations therethrough,

a receptacle attached to the helmet-shaped structure whereby a flow of heated air is directed through the area between said inner and outer walls,

the structure constructed of a material having sufficient rigidity to maintain the contour of the hair contacting surface during operation,

whereby the curvature of said inner hair contacting wall will be imparted and retained by the premoistened hair of a user after the hair has been dried within the helmet structure,

said helmet-shaped structure being positionable atop the head of a user and held in place thereon by a collar means detachably connected to said helmetshaped structure,

said collar dimensioned to rest on the shoulders of a user and to maintain the helmet in position around portions of the head of the user,

the position being determined by placement of the collar on the shoulders.

6. A hair shaping apparatus for imparting a selected coiffure to the hair atop the head ofa user, said apparatus comprising:

a substantially rigid helmet-shaped structure having an inner surface contoured with compound styling curvatures, the styling curvatures corresponding to only one desired hair style, the structure constructed of material having a sufficient rigidity to retain its inner surface contour when subject to a hair drying heat during hair drying, the structure dimensioned to be received over the head of the user with the inner surface in contact with the hair of the user, the compound styling contours contacting and effective to mold the hair surface into a corresponding shaped surface mating with the compound styling curvatures, the structure having a plurality of openings therethrough distributed substantially over the entirety thereof to allow escape of moisture from premoistened hair, during hair drying.

7. A hair shaping apparatus according to claim 5 wherein said helmet-shaped structure is positioned atop the head of a user and held in place by a collar means detachably connected to said helmet-shaped structure, said collar dimensioned to rest on the shoulders of a user and to maintain the helmet in position around portions of the head of the user, the position being determined by placement of the collar on the shoulders.

8. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the structure is constructed of wire mesh and is relatively deformable by the application of force to allow the structure to be stretched to be received over the head of a user and is resilient to return from the stretched position to an operating position having the compound curves. 

1. A hair shaping apparatus for imparting a selected coiffure to the hair of a user, said shaping apparatus comprising: a substantially rigid structure receivable about the head of a user, having an inner surface in full contact with the hair of the user and in variously spaced relationship from the skin of the head of the user, said inner hair contacting surface having a contour corresponding to the outer dimensions of a selected coiffure desired to be imparted to the hair of the user, the structure constructed of a material having a sufficient rigidity to retain the contour of the hair contacting surface during use of the structure, and a positioning means for holding said structure in a constant relative position atop the head of a user, said structure being sectionalized permitting said structure to be assembled atop the head of a user.
 2. A hair shaping apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said structure is sectionalized permitting said structure to be assembled atop the head of a user.
 3. A hair shaping apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said structure has imbedded within said structure an electrical heating means whereby the hair of a user can be rapidly dried.
 4. A hair shaping apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said structure has a plurality of perforations entirely therethrough to permit vapors to escape from within the structure.
 5. A hair shaping apparatus for imparting a selected coiffure to the hair atop the head of a user, said apparatus comprising: a double-walled helmet-shaped structure receivable about the head of a user including an inner hair contacting surface and outer wall, attached together in a spaced relationship, said inner wall having a dimensional curvature correlated to a selected coiffure to be imparted to the hair atop the head of a user, said inner wall having a plurality of perforations therethrough, a receptacle attached to the helmet-shaped structure whereby a flow of heated air is directed through the area between said inner and outer walls, the structure constructed of a material having sufficient rigidity to maintain the contour of the hair contacting surface during operation, whereby the curvature of said inner hair contacting wall will be imparted and retained by the pre-moistened hair of a user after the hair has been dried within the helmet structure, said helmet-shaped structure being positionable atop the head of a user and held in place thereon by a collar means detachably connected to said helmet-shaped structure, said collar dimensioned to rest on the shoulders of a user and to maintain the helmet in position around portions of the head of the user, the position being determined by placement of the collar on the shoulders.
 6. A hair shaping apparatus for imparting a selected coiffure to the hair atop the head of a user, said apparatus comprising: a substantially rigid helmet-shaped structure having an inner surface contoured with compound styling curvatures, the styling curvatures corresponding to only one desireD hair style, the structure constructed of material having a sufficient rigidity to retain its inner surface contour when subject to a hair drying heat during hair drying, the structure dimensioned to be received over the head of the user with the inner surface in contact with the hair of the user, the compound styling contours contacting and effective to mold the hair surface into a corresponding shaped surface mating with the compound styling curvatures, the structure having a plurality of openings therethrough distributed substantially over the entirety thereof to allow escape of moisture from premoistened hair, during hair drying.
 7. A hair shaping apparatus according to claim 5 wherein said helmet-shaped structure is positioned atop the head of a user and held in place by a collar means detachably connected to said helmet-shaped structure, said collar dimensioned to rest on the shoulders of a user and to maintain the helmet in position around portions of the head of the user, the position being determined by placement of the collar on the shoulders.
 8. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the structure is constructed of wire mesh and is relatively deformable by the application of force to allow the structure to be stretched to be received over the head of a user and is resilient to return from the stretched position to an operating position having the compound curves. 